Performing Chinese Contemporary Art Song
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Performing Chinese Contemporary Art Song: A Portfolio of Recordings and Exegesis Qing (Lily) Chang Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Elder Conservatorium of Music Faculty of Arts The University of Adelaide July 2017 Table of contents Abstract Declaration Acknowledgements List of tables and figures Part A: Sound recordings Contents of CD 1 Contents of CD 2 Contents of CD 3 Contents of CD 4 Part B: Exegesis Introduction Chapter 1 Historical context 1.1 History of Chinese art song 1.2 Definitions of Chinese contemporary art song Chapter 2 Performing Chinese contemporary art song 2.1 Singing Chinese contemporary art song 2.2 Vocal techniques for performing Chinese contemporary art song 2.3 Various vocal styles for performing Chinese contemporary art song 2.4 Techniques for staging presentations of Chinese contemporary art song i Chapter 3 Exploring how to interpret ornamentations 3.1 Types of frequently used ornaments and their use in Chinese contemporary art song 3.2 How to use ornamentation to match the four tones of Chinese pronunciation Chapter 4 Four case studies 4.1 The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Shang Deyi 4.2 I Love This Land by Lu Zaiyi 4.3 Lullaby by Shi Guangnan 4.4 Autumn, Pamir, How Beautiful My Hometown Is! by Zheng Qiufeng Conclusion References Appendices Appendix A: Romanized Chinese and English translations of 56 Chinese contemporary art songs Appendix B: Text of commentary for 56 Chinese contemporary art songs Appendix C: Performing Chinese contemporary art song: Scores of repertoire for examination Appendix D: University of Adelaide Ethics Approval Number H-2014-184 ii NOTE: 4 CDs containing 'Recorded Performances' are included with the print copy of the thesis held in the University of Adelaide Library. The CDs must be listened to in the Library. Abstract This performance-based research project surveys Chinese contemporary art song from 1976 to the present, as represented in the work of four composers: Shi Guangnan (1940–1990), Lu Zaiyi (b. 1943), Shang Deyi (b. 1932), and Zheng Qiufeng (b. 1931). The songs, which are grouped into five categories according to their content – patriotic, nature, narrative, love and friendship – are documented, analysed and performed. A particular focus is placed on the interpretation and performance of musical elements that cannot be captured in notation, for example the use of certain vocal ornaments to emulate the four tones of Chinese pronunciation. The submission comprises four CD recordings and a 15,000-word exegesis. A short English commentary is delivered before each song on the CDs so that the listener is able to grasp its content. The interpretation of the songs is informed by consultations and interviews with the composers still living. The recordings provide guidance in the interpretation of this repertoire, and an enhanced understanding of the operatic style at the heart of Chinese art song. The study fills a gap in the knowledge of Chinese contemporary art song theory and practice. iii Declaration I certify that this work contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference has been made in the text. In addition, I certify that no part of this work will, in the future, be used in a submission for any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution without the prior approval of the University of Adelaide and where applicable, any partner institution responsible for the joint-award of this degree. I give consent to this copy of my thesis, when deposited in the University Library, being made available for loan and photocopying, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. I also give permission for the digital version of my thesis to be made available on the web, via the University’s digital research repository, the Library catalogue and also through web search engines, unless permission has been granted by the University to restrict access for a period of time. Qing (Lily) Chang Adelaide, Australia 22 July 2017 iv Acknowledgements I would like to express my deep gratitude to my Principal Supervisor, Stephen Whittington, for his guidance, his profound musical knowledge and his great contribution in creating the piano arrangements for melodies by Shi Guangnan and Zheng Qiufeng, and playing them for my recording. I also would like to show my deep gratitude to my Co-supervisor, Associate Professor Kimi Coaldrake, for her academic guidance and enthusiastic encouragement. Her kindness, patience and willingness to give her time so generously throughout my project has been very much appreciated. Her assistance with editing the English translation of the 56 songs found in Appendix A is also acknowledged. I would like to thank Professor Mark Carroll for his valuable constructive advice, his genuine help and enthusiastic encouragement which always inspired me to keep going. I would like to express my deep gratitude to my close friend Charles Meehan, who was always my first reader and helped to improve my writing even though he was unwell. Sincere thanks to Rebecca Meehan, Charles’ lovely wife, as she always takes care of me, even in hard times; her spiritual support inspired me to keep working hard. Special thanks also to Mark Sandon for his piano accompaniment; even when he was very busy he still kept doing this work for me. My grateful thanks are also extended to the recording engineers, Peter Dowdall and Daniel Pitman, for their excellent work and patience as they spent plenty of time on editing. I also would like to thank my colleagues Vincent Plush for his contribution to the recording of the narrations, and Elizabeth Foster who taught me how to use the Sibelius and helped me to make professional musical examples and charts. My special thanks also to Hong Ruding (洪如丁, Shi Guangnan’s wife), and Chinese composers Zheng Qiufeng (郑秋枫), Shang Deyi (尚德义) and Lu Zaiyi (陆在易) for offering me their books, CDs, DVDs and musical scores. I would also like to extend thanks to my teachers, especially the former director of the Music Institute Beijing Tian Qing ( 田青) for his invaluable insights through interviews and discussions. Also thanks to the Professors of Shandong Normal University, Liu Zaisheng (刘 再生) and Xie Jingtian (解景田) for their sincere encouragement. v My cordial thanks to my lovely student Wang Yan (王燕) who is a famous soprano of the Chinese Opera and Dance Theatre, and my friend Chen Xiao (陈晓) who is head of the Voice Department of Guangzhou Conservatory of Music for sharing their experience and ideas about singing Chinese art song. A special thank you also to Wang Hong (王红), manager of Editing Department 1 of the Culture and Art Publishing House, Beijing, who helped me obtain the latest publication of Shi Guangnan’s music scores. Thank you to professional editor Kate Leeson for copy editing this exegesis. Finally, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to my husband and my lovely daughter for their unconditional support, encouragement and understanding throughout this whole process. Thanks to all my friends, even those who are not named in here. Without their support, it would have been impossible to complete my research in just over three years. vi List of tables and figures Table 1: Four tones of Chinese pronunciation: 四声 18 Table 2: Four shapes of the mouth and strength: si hu 四呼 19 Table 3: Five acting points of the mouth: wu yin 五音 19 Table 4: The thirteen rhymes: shi san zhe 十三辙 20 Figure 1: Tajik dance - Shape of arms and fingers for female 64 Figure 2: Tajil eagle dance - imitation of eagle 65 Figure 3: Tajik eagle dance – action of legs and arms 65 vii List of Musical Examples Ex. 1: Shi Guangnan, Who Knows My Yearning, bar 76. 25 Ex. 2: Shang Deyi, Song of Farewell, bar 40. 26 Ex. 3: Shi Guangnan, The Merry Heart, bars 38, 43 and 75. 26 Ex. 4: Shi Guangnan, A Young Girl’s Heart, bars 9–10 and 15–16. 27 Ex. 5: Shi Guangnan, The Rainbow After Rain, bars 28 and 30. 27 Ex. 6: Shang Deyi, Madam Xiang Lin, bars 19 and 24. 28 Ex. 7: Shang Deyi, Madam Xiang Lin, bars 7 and 9. 28 Ex. 8: Shang Deyi, Madam Xiang Lin, bars 62–65. 29 Ex. 9: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bars 1–9. 32 Ex. 10: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bars 10-22. 34 Ex. 11: J.S. Bach, Prelude in C major, BWV 846, bars 1-5. 35 Ex. 12: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bars 24-26. 36 Ex. 13: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bars 11. 37 Ex. 14: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bars 15. 37 Ex. 15: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bar 29. 37 Ex. 16: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bar 56. 37 Ex. 17: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bars 27 and 31. 38 Ex. 18: Shang Deyi, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, bars 44 and 47. 39 Ex. 19: Lu Zaiyi, I Love This Land, bars 20-32. 42 Ex. 20: Lu Zaiyi, I Love This Land, bars 96-104. 44 Ex. 21: Lu Zaiyi, I Love This Land, bars 10-19. 45 Ex. 22: Lu Zaiyi, I Love This Land, bars 32-40. 46 Ex. 23: Lu Zaiyi, I Love This Land, bars 1-9. 47 Ex. 24: Lu Zaiyi, I Love This Land, bars 105-113.